Fenyak Settles Down, Westfield Tops Chantilly

As the number in the completions column grew, so did Westfield junior quarterback Danny Fenyak's confidence running a crisp, controlled passing game. A well-timed seven-yard screen here, a five-yard hook-up there.

By game's end, the first-year starter had thrown touchdown passes to three receivers in the No. 12 Bulldogs' surprisingly one-sided 32-7 win at No. 16 Chantilly last night in front of a capacity crowd in the Virginia AAA Concorde District opener for both teams.

Fenyak, who inherited the position from 2007 All-Met Offensive Player of the Year Mike Glennon, completed 14 of his first 18 passes, only two for double-digit yardage until senior Evan Winfrey turned a short toss into a 52-yard touchdown as part of an 18-point third quarter for the Bulldogs (4-0).

Westfield beat its nearby rival for the eighth time in nine games.

"We started off kind of rough in the passing game, and tonight we finally clicked," said Fenyak, who had thrown several interceptions in his first three starts. In earlier games, "I was making bad reads and maybe miss left, miss right. Today, we finally hit every spot."

"Danny's learning that he doesn't have to be anybody but himself," Westfield Coach Tom Verbanic said. "It's just playing the game, and the speed of the game. You leave JV and go to varsity and the speed of the game changes."

Westfield scored just before halftime to take a 14-7 lead and blew open the game in the third quarter when senior linebacker Travis Hall recovered a fumble to set up a short field, Fenyak and Winfrey connected, and senior running back Jordan Anderson scored on another short field for his team's third touchdown in a 3-minute 50-second span.

"When the fumble hit, we fell apart too much," Chantilly Coach Mike Lalli said. "The kids were almost overexcited for the game. My job as a coach is to get a feel for when something like that happens, how it's going to affect them. This was our first time in a crucial situation, and we didn't all respond as well as we could."

No. 12 Westfield 32 No. 16 Chantilly 7 Tough Call: Trailing 26-7 midway through the third quarter, Chantilly went for a first down on fourth and 10 from its 34-yard line. A screen pass went for a five-yard loss, and Westfield scored on the next play. "I was trying to get the guys going to make a play," Chargers Coach Mike Lalli said. "When you're down like that, you have to take a couple of more chances." Defensive Standout: Westfield senior Evan Winfrey intercepted two passes.